What is the significance of the first line in Hamlet?In the begining of the play, Barnardo asks "Whos there?" reading into it, what deeper meanings... | eNotes November 11, 2012 at 2:49 PM What a marvelous opening! It immediately sets the tension in the play. First, as Bernardo enters it is presumably dark. He is actually reporting for his guard duty post and ordinarily the guard on post would make the challenge, "Who's there?'" So who else would it be but Francisco? As we find out later there is a ghost stalking the ramparts. This is the source of Bernardo's ambivalence of what is the sound and faint vision of something before him. Is it the apparition or is it Bernardo? Shakespeare adds to this uncertainty by having Bernardo rather than Francisco offer the challenge. We (the audience) are not sure who is actually on duty, i.e. who is there. Two actors enter from the opposite sides of the stage our initial impression is that the first to speak is the guard, but it isn't. We are immediately introduced to the theme of image and reality. But one component of this theme is the theme of stagecraft.

The question is posed to us the audience as much as it is to the other actor on stage. Shakespeare has tightly linked the beginning of the play to the end. There is a circularity in the play. As it ends Horatio has requested that this story of Hamlet's be presently performed. Fortinbras directs four captains to "bear Hamlet...to the stage." So it begins as it has for over 400 years. Lastly, the opening line supports the theme of duality. Other than the ambiguity of the question along with the entrance of two guards and the question being posed to the audience and to the stage, this question is actually delivered twice. At about line 15 as two more characters make there entrance, Francisco finally offers the challenge, "Stand ho! Who is there?" like 0 dislike 0 SparkNotes: Hamlet: Plot Overview Plot Overview Context Character List On a dark winter night, a ghost walks the ramparts of Elsinore Castle in Denmark. Discovered first by a pair of watchmen, then by the scholar Horatio, the ghost resembles the recently deceased King Hamlet, whose brother Claudius has inherited the throne and married the king’s widow, Queen Gertrude.

When Horatio and the watchmen bring Prince Hamlet, the son of Gertrude and the dead king, to see the ghost, it speaks to him, declaring ominously that it is indeed his father’s spirit, and that he was murdered by none other than Claudius. Ordering Hamlet to seek revenge on the man who usurped his throne and married his wife, the ghost disappears with the dawn. Prince Hamlet devotes himself to avenging his father’s death, but, because he is contemplative and thoughtful by nature, he delays, entering into a deep melancholy and even apparent madness. Claudius and Gertrude worry about the prince’s erratic behavior and attempt to discover its cause. They employ a pair of Hamlet’s friends, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, to watch him. When Polonius, the pompous Lord Chamberlain, suggests that Hamlet may be mad with love for his daughter, Ophelia, Claudius agrees to spy on Hamlet in conversation with the girl. But though Hamlet certainly seems mad, he does not seem to love Ophelia: he orders her to enter a nunnery and declares that he wishes to ban marriages.

A group of traveling actors comes to Elsinore, and Hamlet seizes upon an idea to test his uncle’s guilt. He will have the players perform a scene closely resembling the sequence by which Hamlet imagines his uncle to have murdered his father, so that if Claudius is guilty, he will surely react. When the moment of the murder arrives in the theater, Claudius leaps up and leaves the room. Hamlet and Horatio agree that this proves his guilt. Hamlet goes to kill Claudius but finds him praying. Since he believes that killing Claudius while in prayer would send Claudius’s soul to heaven, Hamlet considers that it would be an inadequate revenge and decides to wait. Claudius, now frightened of Hamlet’s madness and fearing for his own safety, orders that Hamlet be sent to England at once. Hamlet goes to confront his mother, in whose bedchamber Polonius has hidden behind a tapestry. Hearing a noise from behind the tapestry, Hamlet believes the king is hiding there. He draws his sword and stabs through the fabric, killing Polonius. For this crime, he is immediately dispatched to England with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.

However, Claudius’s plan for Hamlet includes more than banishment, as he has given Rosencrantz and Guildenstern sealed orders for the King of England demanding that Hamlet be put to death. In the aftermath of her father’s death, Ophelia goes mad with grief and drowns in the river. Polonius’s son, Laertes, who has been staying in France, returns to Denmark in a rage. Claudius convinces him that Hamlet is to blame for his father’s and sister’s deaths. When Horatio and the king receive letters from Hamlet indicating that the prince has returned to Denmark after pirates attacked his ship en route to England, Claudius concocts a plan to use Laertes’ desire for revenge to secure Hamlet’s death. Laertes will fence with Hamlet in innocent sport, but Claudius will poison Laertes’ blade so that if he draws blood, Hamlet will die. As a backup plan, the king decides to poison a goblet, which he will give Hamlet to drink should Hamlet score the first or second hits of the match. Hamlet returns to the vicinity of Elsinore just as Ophelia’s funeral is taking place.

Stricken with grief, he attacks Laertes and declares that he had in fact always loved Ophelia. Back at the castle, he tells Horatio that he believes one must be prepared to die, since death can come at any moment. A foolish courtier named Osric arrives on Claudius’s orders to arrange the fencing match between Hamlet and Laertes. The sword-fighting begins. Hamlet scores the first hit, but declines to drink from the king’s proffered goblet. Instead, Gertrude takes a drink from it and is swiftly killed by the poison. Laertes succeeds in wounding Hamlet, though Hamlet does not die of the poison immediately. First, Laertes is cut by his own sword’s blade, and, after revealing to Hamlet that Claudius is responsible for the queen’s death, he dies from the blade’s poison. Hamlet then stabs Claudius through with the poisoned sword and forces him to drink down the rest of the poisoned wine. Claudius dies, and Hamlet dies immediately after achieving his revenge.

At this moment, a Norwegian prince named Fortinbras, who has led an army to Denmark and attacked Poland earlier in the play, enters with ambassadors from England, who report that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead. Fortinbras is stunned by the gruesome sight of the entire royal family lying sprawled on the floor dead. He moves to take power of the kingdom. Horatio, fulfilling Hamlet’s last request, tells him Hamlet’s tragic story. Fortinbras orders that Hamlet be carried away in a manner befitting a fallen soldier. More Help Hamlet, Prince of Denmark Plot Summary Acts 3, 4 and 5 Hamlet: Plot Summary (Acts 3, 4 and 5) Act 3, Scene 1 Rozencrantz and Guildenstern report to the King that, while Hamlet seems distracted and sad, they do not have a concrete reason for his strange behaviour. The King is now forced to rely upon Ophelia for information about his nephew. Polonius arranges for Ophelia to be in a place where she will surely meet Hamlet, and then he and the King hide in wait for the Prince to arrive.

Hamlet enters talking to himself, in a state of desperation, contemplating suicide: To be, or not to be, that is the question; Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing, end them. To die; to sleep, No more...(3.1.56-61) [ Soliloquy annotations and analysis ] Ophelia greets him, intent to return the letters Hamlet had written to her, as Polonius demands. Hamlet, enraged at all women because of his mother's betrayal, can show Ophelia not a drop of affection. He lashes out at the poor girl, rudely suggesting that she quickly get to a nunnery. "Why wouldst thou be a breeder of sinners?" (3.1.121). Hamlet charges from the room and Ophelia is left to believe that Hamlet has gone utterly mad. But the hiding King knows better than to blame Hamlet's behaviour on unrequited love.

Fearing for his own safety, Claudius decides to send Hamlet away to England, accompanied by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. Polonius, who continues to meddle in the whole affair, suggests that the Queen will surely be able to discover what troubles her son, and that she should meet in private with Hamlet after the play, with himself eavesdropping behind the chamber-curtains. The King agrees: It shall be so: Madness in great ones must not unwatch'd go (3.1.189-90). Act 3, Scene 2 Hamlet coaches three of the Players and stresses the importance of the upcoming performance. They must not overact or improvise, for that will ruin the purpose of the play. Hamlet then confesses his plan to Horatio and asks him to watch the King's face during the poisoning scene. The King, Queen, Polonius, Ophelia, Rozencrantz and Guildenstern enter and take their seats. Hamlet, nervous and excited, lies down at Ophelia's feet. She tries to make conversation, but again, his answers are confusing and hostile.

The Murder of Gonzago begins, and the King is visibly shaken. The King rises and Hamlet responds "What, frighted with false fire?" (3.2.263), chiding the King for being frightened by a mere play. The King calls for lights and the performance comes to an abrupt end. Hamlet and Horatio are left alone to discuss what has happened. They agree that the King has indeed behaved as a guilty man would, and Hamlet is overjoyed. When Rosencrantz comes in to tell Hamlet that the Queen wishes to see him, Hamlet revels in the idea of finally confronting her. "I will speak daggers to her, but use none" (3.2.389). Act 3, Scene 3 Polonius tells the King that Hamlet plans to visit his mother. The King is now aware that Hamlet knows his secret, and that he is no longer safe in his own castle. He soliloquizes on the crimes that he has committed, and falls to his knees to pray for forgiveness. But, he knows the prayer will remain unanswered, for he still enjoys the fruits of his treachery: But O, what form of prayer Can serve my turn?

"Forgive me my foul murder"? That cannot be, since I am still possess'd Of those effects for which I did the murder, My crown, mine own ambition and my queen. May one be pardon'd and retain the offence? Hamlet, on his way to his mother's chamber, sees the King kneeling in prayer, and his first thought is how simple a task it would be to plunge a sword into his uncle's back. But that will not do, for the King would be murdered in a state of repentance and would surely go to heaven. This would be a benefit and not revenge. He wants to kill Claudius in the same state of sin as his father was in when Claudius poisoned him -- that is, not "full of bread" -- not penitent and fasting. Hamlet wants the King to die when he is drunk or enraged or in his incestuous bed with the Queen. So the Prince goes, and the King is left to finish his empty prayer. Act 3, Scene 4 Polonius is already in the Queen's chamber, unable to resist telling her exactly what she should say to the Prince.

As he is speaking, they hear Hamlet down the hall, screaming "mother, mother, mother!" (3.4.5). Polonius hides behind the wall hanging, intending to report every word that is said to the King. The Queen, terrified that Hamlet has come to murder her, cries out for help, and foolish Polonius echoes her cry from behind the curtain. Hamlet, thinking the King has followed him into the room, thrusts his sword into the drapery and pierces Polonius. When Hamlet realizes he has killed the wrong man, he stops to briefly address the situation, but shows no deep regret for taking Polonius' life. Hamlet holds Polonius himself directly accountable: Thou wretched, rash, intruding fool, farewell; I took thee for thy better; take thy fortune; Thou find'st to be too busy is some danger. (3.4.32-34) After this brief acknowledgement of Polonius's death, Hamlet attacks his mother with a barrage of insults and accuses her of being a hypocrite and a harlot. She is bewildered, and begs Hamlet to have mercy, but he is relentless.

The Ghost, who has before expressed his concern for Gertrude, appears before Hamlet and reminds him to take pity on the Queen and to "step between her and her fighting soul." Hamlet, with now a calm and civil tone, urges Gertrude to confess her sins and refrain from further intimacy with the King. He bids her goodnight and looks again upon the body of Polonius. Hamlet is aware of the severity of his deed: "[I] will answer well/The death I gave him" (3.4.76-77). Hamlet leaves, dragging Polonius' body behind him. Act 4, Scene 1 The Queen informs the King that Hamlet has killed Polonius in a fit of madness, and he orders Rozencrantz and Guildenstern to find the body. Claudius, happy he now has a reason to send Hamlet away, tells Gertrude that they will report Hamlet's crime to his council. Act 4, Scene 2 In another room in the castle, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern find Hamlet alone.

They confront him, asking "[w]hat have you done my lord, with the dead body?" (4.2.5). Hamlet, scornfully contemptuous of the two courtiers, calls Rosencrantz a "sponge", and is outraged that they dare demand an answer from him: "what replication should be made by the son of a king?" (4.2.12-13). They persist and order him to accompany them back to the King. Hamlet replies: "The body is with the king, but the king is not with the body" (4.2.27-28). Although this makes perfect sense -- Polonius is with the King, Hamlet's father, but Claudius remains alive -- the courtiers believe him to be incoherent. Hamlet agrees to see the King and runs off stage. He yells out to begin a game of hide-and-seek: "hide fox, and all after" (4.2.30-31). The fox is Polonius, for whom everyone is searching.

Act 4, Scene 3 In a meeting room in the castle, Claudius sits with his lords, and reports to them that Hamlet has killed his lord chamberlain. He tells them that the Prince must be exiled to England, but the public, who love Hamlet, must not know the true reason why he is leaving. Rosencrantz brings the guarded Hamlet before the King: King: Now, Hamlet, where's Polonius? Hamlet: At supper. Hamlet: Not where he eats, but where he is eaten: a certain convocation of politic worms are e'en at him. Your worm is your only emperor for diet: we fat all creatures else fat to us, and we fat ourselves for maggots: your fat king and your lean beggar is but variable service, two dishes, but to one table: that's the end. (4.3.17-25) Hamlet finally tells Claudius that the body is on the stairs that lead into the lobby. The King informs Hamlet that he must leave for England, for his own safety.

Hamlet slyly replies that he knows the King's real purpose for sending him away, but he nonetheless gladly obliges and bids farewell to his mother. When Hamlet exits the room, the King demands that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern follow the Prince closely, and they rush off. Claudius is now alone to reveal his sinister plan: he will send letters to England, a country "raw and red/After the Danish sword" (4.3.60-61), threatening war unless they assassinate Hamlet when he lands on British soil. Act 4, Scene 4 On his way to England, Hamlet meets a Captain in the army led by Fortinbras , the Prince of Norway. Hamlet asks the Captain where they are going and who commands the troops, and the Captain tells him that Fortinbras is leading his men to capture a "little patch of ground/That hath in it no profit but the name" (4.4.18-19). Hamlet is impressed by the idea of so many soldiers preparing to die for an inconsequential piece of land, and he admires their resolve.

He longs to be more like Fortinbras and his men -- they do not lament and waste time pondering when honour is at stake: they act. Hamlet vows that, if he must still think at all, he will think only bloody thoughts. (For more on Hamlet's meeting with the Captain and why these lines are considered corrupt, please click here ). Act 4, Scene 5 Scene 5 opens back at the castle in Elsinore, where Hamlet has been gone a few days. The Queen, Horatio, and a gentleman are discussing poor, tormented Ophelia, who has shattered under the strain of her father's death and Hamlet's cruelty and has gone completely insane. Ophelia enters the room and begins to sing a song about a dead lover and another about Saint Valentine's Day. The King arrives and speaks gently to Ophelia. She leaves, mumbling good night to the court, and the King asks Horatio to follow her. A messenger enters and reports to Claudius that he prepare himself, for Laertes has heard of Polonius's death and holds the King responsible.

He has raised a rebellion, and his men are crying "Choose we; Laertes shall be king!" (4.5.104). Suddenly, the doors burst open and Laertes rushes into the castle. He holds his Danish rebels at bay and speaks to Claudius alone: "O thou vile king/Give me my father!" (4.5.112-13). But Claudius knows how to control the young and impetuous Laertes, and soon directs Laertes's rage towards Hamlet. From outside the meeting room Laertes hears footsteps. It is his sister, Ophelia, and he greets her with a outpouring of grief, vowing that her "madness shall be paid with weight." Ophelia replies with a nonsensical song and gives her brother some violets. Laertes, overcome with sorrow, cries "Do you see this, O God?" The King offers his condolences once more and then suggests to Laertes that he focus on sweet revenge. They move to another room to discuss a course of action, and the scene comes to a close. Act 4, Scene 6 A sailor brings Horatio a letter from Hamlet.

He writes of his capture by pirates on his way to England. These "thieves of mercy" have released the Prince, on the condition that he will repay them when he returns to Denmark. Hamlet finishes the letter by asking Horatio to come to him at once, and to ensure that the King receive letters intended only for him. Finally, Hamlet writes that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern have continued their course for England. Horatio grants the sailor permission to take the letters to the King, imploring him to return swiftly, so that they can meet with Hamlet at once. Act 4, Scene 7 The King and Laertes meet to discuss Hamlet. The King tells Laertes that he cannot harm the Prince directly, out of respect and concern for his beautiful Queen, who loves Hamlet above all else. Moreover, Claudius cannot enrage the people of Denmark, who adore the Prince and would surely rise up in protest. So the King proposes that they arrange a fencing match between Laertes and Hamlet, and that Hamlet, thinking it is for sport, will use a blunt sword, while Laertes will use his own military sword.

To ensure Hamlet's death, Laertes will coat the tip with a poison "So mortal, that but dip a knife in it/Where it draws blood, no cataplasm so rare/ ... can save the thing from death/That is but scratch'd withal" (4.7.142-45). The King then suggests that a goblet full of poisoned wine be set out for Hamlet to drink if he becomes thirsty during the match. Suddenly, they hear noise outside the door. The Queen enters with the news that Ophelia has fallen off a willow tree branch and drowned. Laertes tries to fight his emotion, but storms out of the room. The King, worried that Laertes will act in haste and ruin the plan, rushes to follow him. Act 5, Scene 1 Ophelia is to be buried in the churchyard and the two gravediggers preparing her grave find it unusual that someone who has committed suicide be buried on sacred ground. They agree that Ophelia is receiving a Christian burial because she is a gentlewoman, belonging to "great folk." They banter back and forth, trying to alleviate the boredom of digging.

Horatio and Hamlet come upon the scene just as the second gravedigger is leaving to fetch some liquor from a nearby tavern. Hamlet is disturbed that the first gravedigger, who has begun to sing a love song, can be so happy on such a solemn occasion. Horatio replies that habit has made the gravedigger indifferent to the gravity of his work. The gravedigger produces a skull that belonged to the King's jester, Yorick and Hamlet takes the skull, sparking his thoughts on death and its power to ravage even the most wealthy and powerful of people. A funeral procession approaches, and Hamlet sees the King and Queen and Laertes and asks who has died. Laertes, hysterical with grief, leaps into the grave, crying "Hold off the earth a while/Till I have caught her once more in mine arms" (5.1.250-51). When Hamlet realizes who is being buried, grief overcomes him too, and he leaps into the grave with Laertes, and they begin to grapple.

The King's attendants pull them out of the grave, and Hamlet exclaims: "I loved Ophelia: forty thousand brothers/Could not, with all their quantity of love/Make up my sum" (5.1.270-72). Hamlet is restrained and leaves the funeral, sorrowful and bewildered at Laertes' behaviour and hostility towards him: "What is the reason that you use me thus?/I lov'd you ever" (5.1.290). Hamlet did not intend to murder Polonius; it was an accident brought on by the old man himself. And Hamlet was en-route to England when Ophelia fell ill, so he really does not understand Laertes's rage. The King asks Horatio to go with Hamlet, and reminds Laertes of their plan for revenge. Act 5, Scene 2 Back at the castle, Hamlet expresses regret for his outlandish behaviour at the grave site. He converses with Horatio, telling him that he intercepted the letter Claudius sent to England, and replaced his own name on the death warrant with the names of the courtiers, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.

Hamlet presumes that they met their end in England, but their deaths are not on his conscience, for they were destroyed by their own persistent meddling. Horatio is shocked by Hamlet's cynical apathy: "Why, what a king is this!" (5.2.62). Hamlet reminds Horatio of the horrible events that have transpired, and asks him if it is not his right to feel anger and thirst for vengeance. The courtier Osric enters and welcomes Hamlet back to Denmark. Orsic tells Hamlet that the King requests him to fight Laertes in a fencing match. The King has placed his bets on Hamlet, and has wagered a fine collection of goods: Barbary horses, French rapiers and poniards, and gun carriages. Hamlet accepts the challenge, believing that it is indeed only a friendly match. He does expresses a hint of apprehension "thou wouldst not think how ill all's here about my heart" (5.2.202), but he dismisses it, telling Horatio that he is prepared to die if fate commands it so. The court assembles to watch the match, and the Queen takes her place at the elaborately decorated head table.

The King puts Laertes' hand into Hamlet's to start the duel. Hamlet begs Laertes's pardon, denying that he ever meant to hurt anyone. Laertes pretends to accept Hamlet's apology, saying "I do receive your offer'd love like love/And will not wrong it" (5.2.241-2). They fight, and Hamlet easily wins the first round of combat. The King pours wine to toast Hamlet's success and tries to persuade Hamlet to stop and take a drink of the poisoned brew. The Prince does not want to interrupt his winning streak and refuses the wine, placing the goblet on the table beside the Queen. Gertrude is thirsty and, despite the King's plea, drinks from the cup. The fight intensifies and Laertes wounds Hamlet. But in the ensuing scuffle, they exchange rapiers, and Hamlet pierces Laertes with the poisoned sword. In a whirlwind of confusion, the Queen falls and dies after telling Hamlet that she has been poisoned.

Laertes, knowing he will be dead in moments, exclaims "I am justly kill'd with mine own treachery" (5.2.297). He confesses to Hamlet that he has poisoned his sword and that Hamlet will too be dead in less than a half hour. Laertes admits to plotting against Hamlet and casts blame upon the King. Hamlet stabs Claudius with Laertes's sword and forces him to drink the wine that has killed Gertrude: "Here thou incestuous, murderous, damned Dane/Drink off this potion: is thy union here?/Follow my mother" (5.2.315-7). Laertes, with his dying breath, asks Hamlet to exchange forgiveness with him, and absolves him of Polonius's murder. Horatio tries to drink the poisoned wine, but Hamlet pleads with him to stay alive and tell the world his story. Although he lay dying, Hamlet remembers his people will be left without a king and so he chooses Fortinbras, the valiant Prince of Norway, to rule Denmark. Hamlet is finished: "The rest is silence" (5.2.348).

Horatio bids a final adieu to his noble friend: Now cracks a noble heart. Good night, sweet prince, And flights of angels sing thee to thy rest! Fortinbras orders four captains to carry Hamlet away and give him a soldier's burial, and he salutes Hamlet's kingly virtues as the play comes to a close. How to cite this article: Mabillard, Amanda. Hamlet Plot Summary. Shakespeare Online. 15 Aug. 2006. < > . ______________ SparkNotes: Hamlet: Act II, scene ii Act II, scene ii Act I, scene v–Act II, scene i Act II, scene ii, page 2 page 1 of 3 Summary Within the castle, Claudius and Gertrude welcome Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two of Hamlet’s friends from Wittenberg. Increasingly concerned about Hamlet’s erratic behavior and his apparent inability to recover from his father’s death, the king and queen have summoned his friends to Elsinore in the hope that they might be able to cheer Hamlet out of his melancholy, or at least discover the cause of it.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern agree to investigate, and the queen orders attendants to take them to her “too much changed” son (II.ii.36). Polonius enters, announcing the return of the ambassadors whom Claudius sent to Norway. Voltimand and Cornelius enter and describe what took place with the aged and ailing king of Norway: the king rebuked Fortinbras for attempting to make war on Denmark, and Fortinbras swore he would never again attack the Danes. The Norwegian king, overjoyed, bequeathed upon Fortinbras a large annuity, and urged him to use the army he had assembled to attack the Poles instead of the Danes. He has therefore sent a request back to Claudius that Prince Fortinbras’s armies be allowed safe passage through Denmark on their way to attack the Poles. Relieved to have averted a war with Fortinbras’s army, Claudius declares that he will see to this business later. Voltimand and Cornelius leave. Turning to the subject of Hamlet, Polonius declares, after a wordy preamble, that the prince is mad with love for Ophelia.

He shows the king and queen letters and love poems Hamlet has given to Ophelia, and proposes a plan to test his theory. Hamlet often walks alone through the lobby of the castle, and, at such a time, they could hide behind an arras (a curtain or wall hanging) while Ophelia confronts Hamlet, allowing them to see for themselves whether Hamlet’s madness really emanates from his love for her. The king declares that they will try the plan. Gertrude notices that Hamlet is approaching, reading from a book as he walks, and Polonius says that he will speak to the prince. Gertrude and Claudius exit, leaving Polonius alone with Hamlet. Polonius attempts to converse with Hamlet, who appears insane; he calls the old man a “fishmonger” and answers his questions irrationally. But many of Hamlet’s seemingly lunatic statements hide barbed observations about Polonius’s pomposity and his old age. Polonius comments that while Hamlet is clearly mad, his replies are often “pregnant” with meaning (II.ii.206).

He hurries away, determined to arrange the meeting between Hamlet and Ophelia. As Polonius leaves, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern enter, and Hamlet seems pleased to see them. They discuss Hamlet’s unhappiness about recent affairs in Denmark. Hamlet asks why they have come. Sheepishly, the two men claim they have come merely to visit Hamlet, but he sternly declares that he knows that the king and queen sent for them. They confess this to be true, and Hamlet says that he knows why: because he has lost all of his joy and descended into a state of melancholy in which everything (and everyone) appears sterile and worthless. Rosencrantz smiles and says he wonders how Hamlet will receive a theatrical troupe that is currently traveling toward the castle. The trumpets blow, announcing the arrival of the actors (or “players”). Hamlet tells his friends they are welcome to stay at Elsinore, but that his “uncle-father and aunt-mother” are deceived in his madness. He is mad only some of the time and at other times is sane. 1 What is the conclusion of Hamlet? | eNotes What is the conclusion of Hamlet?

ladyvols1 | High School Teacher | (Level 3) Senior Educator Posted on February 3, 2009 at 6:01 AM As many of Shakespeare's plays end "Hamlet," is a tragedy with a great deal of death in the conclusion. The queen is dead from poison that was meant for Hamlet. The king is dead of poison that was forced down his throat by Hamlet in revenge for the death of his father and now his mother. Laertes tells Hamlet that they both will die because the rapier that each was cut with had been dipped in poison. Fortinbras finally arrives home and finds out that he will finally be king, but he is really sad about it because he was good friends with Hamlet. Hamlet tells Horatio to make sure everyone knows what happened to his family and what really went on so there will be no misinformation passed on to future generations.

”Fortinbras orders Hamlet’s body carried “like a soldier” to the stage, and says if Hamlet had had the chance, he would “have proved most royal.” He orders appropriate funeral rites for Hamlet, including the firing of ordnance, which ends the play.” mlsldy3 | Elementary School Teacher | (Level 2) Educator Posted on January 7, 2015 at 2:18 PM Hamlet is a tortured soul. His father's ghost keeps visiting him and he learns that his uncle, Claudius, is the one who killed him. Claudius has now become king and married Hamlet's mother. Hamlet is bent of revenge, but it can be said that Hamlet was not crazy. He was a man driven by grief and revenge for the wrongs that were done to him. When Ophelia commits suicide after her father's death, her brother, Laertes, comes and is angry and the king tells him that it was all Hamlet's fault. Laertes agrees to a sword fight with Hamlet and the king has dipped the tip of the sword with poison.

He has also poisoned a goblet of wine in case Hamlet doesn't get cut by the sword. After Hamlet and Laertes are both cut by the sword, Laertes tells Hamlet the truth. He tells him that Claudius is the one behind the death of his mother and is the one who poisoned the sword. Hamlet rams the sword through Claudius and forces him to drink the poisoned wine, eventually killing him. Hamlet succumbs to the poison from the sword, but tells Horatio that he wants it to be known what really happened there. Horatio tells Fortinbras, the Norwegian prince, the whole story of Hamlet. Fortinbras orders that Hamlet be carried away in a manner fitting a fallen solider. Hamlet is such a tragic story. Hamlet was a man bent on revenge on the wrongs done to the people he loved. He was not crazy, he was just a man that loved his family and wanted justice for them. Sources: April 5, 2016 at 2:45 AM The conclusion of Hamlet in Act 5, Scene 2 is, similar to many of Shakespeare’s tragedies, a high body count.

Laertes has poisoned Hamlet, Hamlet has poisoned Laertes, Gertrude has drunk poison intended for Hamlet, and Claudius has been twice poisoned by Hamlet. Although Horatio wants to poison himself, saying he is more “an antique Roman than a Dane” (line 342), Hamlet prevents him, insisting that Horatio must remain to tell his story. Horatio’s words allude to Roman tragedies, including Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar, in which Roman generals would often kill themselves when their cause was lost. After Hamlet dies, the final two deaths are announced, as an ambassador arrives to tell Hamlet that Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are dead. Young Fortinbras arrives and the plot of the play is finally resolved. Hamlet has a running theme of revenge, specifically that of sons avenging fathers, which is brought to completion by Young Fortinbras arriving to avenge his father, who was killed by Hamlet Senior before the play begins. Laertes has killed Hamlet, who killed Laertes’s father Polonius, and Hamlet has killed his uncle Claudius. Revenge is achieved by all, but Shakespeare suggests at a great cost.

Revenge was considered very sinful by Elizabethan society, who interpreted the Bible verse “To me belongeth vengeance” (King James Bible, Deuteronomy 32:35) as God’s claim on all right to revenge. So naturally, Shakespeare depicts humans taking revenge into their own hands as having epic and tragic consequences, as Hamlet ends with not only the end of one family, but of an entire kingdom, as Fortinbras’s army arrives from Norway. Shakespeare emphasizes this through the aforementioned reference to ancient Roman tragedy, but also through reference to Biblical tragedy. Horatio alone is left to tell Fortinbras what has occurred, a situation that is strongly reminiscent of the Biblical story of Job, where one servant survives to tell Job that all his children have been killed. It’s a connection that will be picked up again in Herman Melville’s novel Moby Dick, as Ishmael alone survives to tell the story of Ahab’s quest for revenge against the whale.

Sources: Hamlet Plot Summary: Overview of Hamlet You are here: Home / Shakespeare Play Summaries / Hamlet Summary: Plot Overview Read a Hamlet summary below: Prince Hamlet’s student friend, Horatio, goes to the battlements of Denmark’s Elsinore castle late at night to meet the guards. They tell him about a ghost they have seen that resembles the late king, Hamlet. It reappears and they decide to tell the prince. Hamlet’s uncle, Claudius, having become king, has now married Hamlet’s widowed mother, Gertrude. In the court, after envoys are sent to Norway, the prince is dissuaded from returning to university. Hamlet still mourns his father’s death and hearing of the ghost from Horatio he determines to see it for himself. Laertes, son of the courtier, Polonius, departs for France, warning his sister, Ophelia, against thinking too much of Hamlet’s attentions. The ghost appears to Hamlet and tells him that he was murdered by Claudius. The prince swears vengeance and his friends are sworn to secrecy as Hamlet decides to feign madness while he tests the truth of the ghost’s allegations.

He rejects Ophelia, as Claudius and Polonius spy on him seeking to find a reason for his sudden strange behaviour. Guildenstern and Rosencrantz, former student friends of Hamlet, are summoned by Claudius and their arrival coincides with that of a group of travelling actors. The prince knows these players well and they rehearse together before arranging to present Hamlet’s choice of play before the king and queen, which will include scenes close to the circumstances of the old king’s death. At the performance Hamlet watches closely as Claudius is provoked into interrupting the play and storming out, resolving to send the prince away to England. Hamlet is summoned by his distressed mother and, on the way he spares Claudius whom he sees kneeling, attempting to pray. To kill him while he is praying would send his soul to heaven rather than to the hell he deserves. Polonius hides in Gertrude’s room to listen to the conversation, but Hamlet detects movement as he upbraids his mother. He stabs the concealing tapestry and so kills the old man. The ghost reappears, warning his son not to delay revenge, nor to upset his mother.

As the army of Norway’s King Fortinbras crosses Denmark to attack Poland, Hamlet is sent to England, ostensibly as an ambassador, but he discovers Claudius’s plan to have him killed. Outwitting this plot Hamlet returns alone, sending Rosencrantz and Guildenstern to their deaths in his stead. During Hamlet’s absence Ophelia goes mad as a result of her father’s death and she is drowned. Hamlet returns and meets Horatio in the graveyard. With the arrival of Ophelia’s funeral Hamlet confronts Laertes who, after attempting a revolt against Claudius, has taken his father’s place at the court. A duel is arranged between Hamlet and Laertes at which Claudius has plotted for Hamlet to die either on a poisoned rapier, or from poisoned wine. The plans go wrong and both Laertes and Hamlet are wounded, while Gertrude unwittingly drinks from the poisoned cup. Hamlet, in his death throes, kills Claudius, and Horatio is left to explain the truth to the new king, Fortinbras, who returns, victorious, from the Polish wars.

Question: Which Norwegian prince delivers the closing lines of Hamlet?
Answer: Fortinbras